MBDA UK Integrates MANPADS Missiles into Raven 5 Air Defense System

British defense company MBDA UK has integrated missiles derived from a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) into the Raven 5 surface-to-air missile (SAM) system.

The company announced the development on its official website.

At the Farnborough International Airshow 2026, MBDA UK unveiled a Raven 5 system fitted with two missiles from the prospective Italian Fulgur MANPADS.

The integration comes amid the growing prominence of unmanned aerial systems (UAS) on the battlefield and the need for an effective means of countering them.

The Fulgur MANPADS is being developed by MBDA Italia as a replacement for the U.S.-made Stinger systems that have been in service with the Italian Army for several decades.

The new missile has a diameter of 70 mm and is positioned in the 10 kg class. Its stated effective engagement range is 5 km.

The system is expected to enter serial production later this year, with the Italian Army set to become the launch customer after signing the procurement contract in June 2025.

Raven 5 is a British-developed surface-to-air missile (SAM) system based on the original Raven configuration currently in service with Ukraine. The new variant features an increased ready-to-fire missile load from two to four missiles, a trainable launcher, and the ability to employ lower-cost missiles derived from MANPADS.

The upgraded system was first presented in April 2026.

In Ukraine, the Raven air defense system has received positive operational feedback. As of June 2025, its MBDA UK-produced ASRAAM missiles had achieved a reported success rate of 70% across 400 launches.

The system was developed in just four months at the initiative of the Royal Air Force’s Air and Space Warfare Centre, which proposed mounting short-range ASRAAM air-to-air missiles on the readily available Supercat HMT-600 platform to create a ground-based air defense system.

The AIM-132 ASRAAM air-to-air missile has a total weight of 88 kg and is capable of reaching a maximum speed of up to Mach 3.

The missile is estimated to have an effective engagement range of up to 15 km when launched from the ground (compared with more than 25 km when air-launched). Its 10 kg warhead provides sufficient lethality to engage a wide range of aerial targets, including both unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and combat aircraft.

The Supercat HMT-600 platform is equipped with the Hawkeye EO passive detection and targeting system developed by Chess Dynamics.

This enables the system to detect, track, and engage targets without emitting radar signals, allowing it to operate without triggering enemy radar warning receivers.

Militarnyi previously reported th in addition to developing dedicated SAM systems of this class, MBDA UK is also exploring the integration of ASRAAM missiles onto other platforms and legacy launchers. Potential future platforms include the Rapier surface-to-air missile system and containerized launcher configurations.